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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (March 12, 1982)
Interesting merits and demerits of a U.S. versus U.K. education By Aliae Refson Of ttt* Emerald “What language do they speak in England ?” It's a ques tion I've been asked an alarming number of times since my arrival at the University six months ago It has led me to believe that a brief comparison between the American and British educa tional systems might be helpful. From my limited experience, English high schools seem to be institutions with the one-track aim of churning out students wise in the art of studying, (a skill suited only to the tiny min ority who go on to universities) American high schools seem to be communities charged with the function of teaching youths to get on with each another in their attempts to persuade students that learning is fun, they sometimes fail to prepare them for the demands of col lege Yet, a large percentage of American high school grad uates head in that direction. The English student begins high school at 11 Compuisory education continues until 16, optional until 18 The student has no control over his cur riculum until he is 15 Mastery of the compulsory basics is the first priority The “frilly" subjects available to American students, like jewelry making and personal intercom munication, are no doubt fun, but seem to produce a propen sity of college students virtually unexposed to the laws of gram mar However, the English sys tem might do well to adopt some American "real life" prepara tory classes, such as driver s education, citizenship and personal finance A com promise seems in order During their last two years of high school. English students study three chosen subjects, preparing for Advanced Level Examinations, or "A" levels A British student cannot change his area of specialty at will. De gree requirements specify par ticular A levels and a student who took arts subjects at A level would be unable to take a B S degree The final A-level exams are comprehensive, covering work of the entire two-year period This is a far cry from the Amer ican school system where students are only tested on one term's material In American colleges, the constant pressure of mid-terms and papers due daily forces students into tightly-regulated work regimes An English student might be assigned papers on a weekly or even Over twice as many students attend college in the U.S.A. monthly basis and only have exams at the end of his first and third years English students pursue de grees in one of their A-level subjects When an English student takes a degree in physics, for example, it's a de gree in physics alone — nothing else need be studied Some joint-honors courses, where students study two subjects in depth, have been developed, but this still contrasts with the incredible number of seemingly unrelated subjects taken by American students Many Americans I have spo ken to regard the English de gree as shockingly narrow, but it can be argued that an English high school satisfactorily fulfills the demands of a general education For instance, an English student going to a un iversity with a science back ground will have had two years of calculus in high school For extensive studies in a field, Americans rely on graduate course work. After all, only 36 credits are needed in one field to qualify for a ba chelor's degree. Thus, Amer icans become more specialized in one area than the "specialized" English. Apart from a few sequence courses, tiny isolated topics can be studied at random in Amer ican universities. Many Amer icans enroll for certain classes simply because they are the on ly ones that fit together into an otherwise impossible time schedule. While at the other extreme, tne incredible pos sibility exists that students may be unable to get into classes high on their priority list. The basic difference between English and American educa tion seems to be that the former stresses professionalism and the latter diversity. Here, the University provides a fun at mosphere, where the student is led through a shallow exploration of knowledge. Only in the last few moments is he expected to discover his true vocation and pause there to dabble a little longer. From the fact that well over twice as high a percentage of Americans go to college as English, it seems reasonable to suppose that many Americans go to college without any real intellectual curiosity. The nature of the system encourages their continued low-level participa tion. There seems to be an unwrit ten right for every Americn ci tizen — who can find the fin ances — to have a college education regardless of ability; the entry requirements are, after all, minimal. In England, univer sity fees are paid by the govern ment but this right has to be won through academic achieve ment Letters plan gets a ‘well done’ During a brief and informal meeting of the Student Univer sity Affairs Board Thursday, both ASUO Pres Rich Wilkins and SUAB Chairer Gale Graham made references to the success of the recent congressional let ter-writing campaign IRISH i BLEND f coffee that stands up to the heartiest traditions! ( THE BEANERY 24th & HILYARD & f "SUAB and ASUO have worked together and done a good job in putting across this proposal," Graham said The campaign was well done,” The ASUO/SUAB co-spon sored proposal yielded a total of 650 letters from students Due to this success, similar cam paigns will be initiated at the beginning of each term, said SUAB vice chairer Mike Prothe "I want to thank all of you for helping with the letters," Wilkins said "It was a group effort. It came off well." YOU SHOULD GO THROUGH SORORITY RUSHNOW because • those who pledge houses during Fall Rush next year may not be able to move into their houses. • rush is a great chance to meet people and discover for yourself what sororities are all about. • rushing now is more worthwhile — it's easier, more relaxed and gets you involved now — in time for the Spring fun!!! LAST CHANCE Register today at the EMU. 2Tk ST. PATRICK'S DAY CELEBRA TION DANCE *5 Saturday, March 1 ?th 9 p.m.-2 a.m. HOT WHACKS VOYAGER The best of the 60’s Top 40 Rock & Roll 2 SUPER BANDS^ONLY S2.S0 COVER ONLY AT HOLIDAY INN 225 Coburg Road 342-5181 .M No matter how hard it rains, Nothing helps you take the dirt off like the FIRST STREET CAR WASH w A S H V A C u u M SELF-SERVICE COIN OPERATED First Street Car Wash Comer of 1st & Jefferson "closest car wash to the campus" A VINO'S SPAGHETTI HOUSE r PIZZA, -^L. 342-8111 TINO’S • Full dinner menu • 23 varieties of Pizzas • Whole wheat and white crust • Pizzas to go -cooked and uncooked 15th and Willamette Open every day Mon-Fri 11-1:00 am Sat 5-1:00 am Sun 5-11:00 pm jemu Cultural Forum presents JOHN IllliiAUTFORI) i'.'.V.V.V.V.V.V.V BLUEGRASS, JAZZ. ROCK SAWIEDDAff, SMffitEIU n $ ?sS® IPEfl SHOT MJLIMDtMI Tickets: *5.50, UO Students ‘6 50 General Public Available at: EMU Mam Desk; Buy & Sell Center at 361 W. 5th Eugene; Earth River Records on the Eugene Mall.
